Description

The core of the band was singer-songwriter, Vic Godard, plus assorted soul fans, who congregated around early gigs by the Sex Pistols until Malcolm McLaren suggested they form their own band. Subway Sect were among the performers at the 100 Club Punk Festival on Monday, 21 September 1976 – sharing the bill with Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Clash and the Sex Pistols. The first line-up of Godard on vocals, Paul Packham on drums, Paul Myers on bass and Rob Symmons on guitar lasted for four gigs before Mark Laff replaced Packham. Laff himself then left for fellow punk group Generation X after the White Riot tour. A third drummer, Bob Ward, was recruited, and it is this line-up that can be heard on the band’s first John Peel session and also on the single “Nobody’s Scared”. This was the first and only release on Braik Records, a label owned by Bernie Rhodes, who managed both Subway Sect and The Clash. Rhodes subsequently supervised the recording of their debut album, with Clash sound man and producer Mickey Foote at the production helm. At that time the band toured intensively with The Clash and others. However, just as their first album was ready for release, for reasons that remain obscure, Rhodes sacked all the band (except Godard) and Subway Sect mark 1 ceased to exist. The album was never released, although a single from the sessions “Ambition” was remixed and released on Rough Trade Records, with the B-side “Different Story (Rock and Roll Even)” also taken from the same sessions. “Ambition” was ranked at No. 15 among the top “Tracks of the Year” for 1978 by NME. A further track “Parallel Lines” was released as a track on the C81 cassette produced by NME magazine. Since then, some monitor copies of tracks from the lost album have come to light on various Subway Sect compilations. Any copies of the actual album tapes appear to no longer exist.

This is that 1978 7″ Ambition. Second press with orange lettering. EX/EX+